We present a test for those in enduring partnerships who appreciate horror films: Sit down with your significant other and watch Together. This independent film success of 2025 just made its launch on a streaming platform on the Hulu service. At first glance, it may seem like typical body horror, but beneath Together lies a deep examination about our choices in loving our partners.
A Debut Feature Delving into Relationship Dynamics
Together represents the debut feature-length film for filmmaker Michael Shanks. It stars actors Alison Brie and Dave Franco as Tim and Millie, partners that have remained a couple for a decade. Married in actuality in 2017, the two stars contribute a unique chemistry to their characters, masterfully depicting both the strengths and weaknesses of a long-term relationship.
The plot starts when the couple move from the metropolis to the rural area for professional reasons. A familiar story element, admittedly, but that’s mostly where the cliches conclude. Together evolves into as much a psychological exploration of the couple's dynamic as it is a body horror flick.
A Paranormal Spark
While walking near their country house, a storm hits, and the protagonists discover an subterranean cavern. After spending the night there and managing to escape, a supernatural entity begins influencing the duo. This force compels a supernatural closeness between them that goes well past typical partnership.
The whole movie is a gradually intensifying horror experience, weaving in bits of hallucinatory nightmares, gross (but not excessively graphic) biological grotesqueries, and authentically humorous dialogue (sometimes in the middle of something disturbing). Michael Shanks orchestrates these parts expertly and delivers them in a consistently growing aura of dread.
Nuanced Portrayals
A significant portion of Together is solely the performances of its stars, and they skillfully illustrate countless layers to the dynamic between Tim and Millie. Millie's sense of self and emotional bond is waning due to a distance. Her unspoken irritation of Tim for his reluctance to chase only his floundering music career gradually emerges.
Tim, on the other hand feels trapped and cut off by Millie, who’s the cause they’ve relocated rural and far away from his support system. He fears the concept of completely losing his personal autonomy in another person. This fear is amplified by the circumstance he does not operate a vehicle and needs Millie for getting around.
The director's cleverest decision is that he avoids making either of his characters the definite antagonist.
The couple confront the type of challenges that are inherent in most partnerships after ten years. Fundamentally, they still love each other. They still laugh together, provide solace, and share intimately at times. But under the surface, there’s an inescapable feeling of questioning about their relationship.
Allegory and Meaning
While the supernatural forces in Together act as a metaphor for these concerns of codependency and giving oneself over to a partner, the metaphor does not come across as clumsy or self-important. Instead, these more disturbing, unsettling scenes present a ideal counterpart to the relationship narrative. Both the horror and the drama work together in a mutually beneficial way.
A Debated Finale
Together’s final act, which remains unspoiled, has sparked debate on the film’s ultimate message about codependent relationships. Accounts suggest that single viewers have understood the narrative as a powerful case for remaining unattached. Meanwhile, certain partners having disagreements found that the film ultimately assisted them resolve their issues.
Regardless of your relationship status, your own interpretation could potentially serve as a telling indicator of how you think about commitment. Will the finale inspire anxiety and horror, or a uplifting feeling of optimism? Will you see yourself in either protagonist and yell at the screen, or simply glance toward your significant other and utter, “We could get through that together”?
Whatever the case may be, Together is an experiment you can undertake right now.
Together is streaming on the streaming service Hulu at present.
